Producer Norman Lear speaks in support of thousands of Writers Guild of America (WGA) writers and others in the fifth day of their strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers... (Associated Press)

(Newser)
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The strike by the Writers Guild of America could leave an entire genre hanging by a bubble. Daytime soaps operas won't be sent into reruns immediately, like late-night talk shows, because producers have scripts stockpiled. But the soaps have been hemorraghing viewers for years, reports the Los Angeles Times, and the strike could prove fatal to the lowest performers.

Once viewers lose the soap habit they disappear for good. "Our audience watches because they've been watching for a long time," said a writer on popular soap "General Hospital. "We lost 8 million viewers over the OJ Simpson trial who never came back." If the strike continues past the end of the year, producers are expected to hire non-union writers—or write scripts themselves.